Draft-equalizer.



PATENTED JUNE 16, 1903,

' B. E. LOWDER.

DRAFT EQUALIZER. APPLIUATION FILED JAN. 14, 1903.

K0 MODEL.

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UNITED STATES Patented June 16, 1903.

ELMER ELIAS LOWDER, OF WAVERLY, ILLINOIS.

DRAFT-EQUALIZER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No, 731,113, dated June 16, 1903.

Application filed January 14, 1903. Serial No. 139,042. (No model.)

1'0 all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ELMER ELIAS LOWDER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Waverly, in the county of Morgan and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Draft-Equalizers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,

such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to draft-equalizers; and it consists of certain novel features of combination and construction of parts, the preferred form whereof will be hereinafter clearly set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part of this application.

The object of my invention, among others, is to provide a draft-equalizer which will be found very useful for a great variety of purposes, as upon wagons or other forms of vehicles and upon plows, barrows, harvestingmaohines, &c my prime object being to provide a reliably eificient device of the character specified which may be very cheaply manufactured and easily applied to any or all of the uses above enumerated.

Other objects and advantages will be hereinafter made clearly apparent.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 illustrates my invention complete as applied to use in perspective. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of my equalizer complete ready for use,

while Fig. 3 is an edge or side view thereof.

Fol-convenience in designating the various details of my invention and elements required to show a practical application thereof to use numerals will be employed, the same numeral applying to a similar part throughout the views.

1 indicates the tongue of a wagon or barvesting-machine, to which I secure my improved evener or draft-equalizer comprising the parallel complementary members 2 and 3, which are pivotally united, preferably near their middle portions, by the compensatingblook 4:, which holds the said parallel members 1 and 2 substantially the same distance apart as the width of the tongue, with which they are designed to cooperate. The rear ends of the parallel sections 2 and 3 are provided with suitable apertures adapted, re-

the forward end of the member 2, while the section 8 holds a similar relationship to the forward end of the member 3, said parts being held in operative combination by the bolt 9, to the upper end of which I pivotally connect the clevis 10, the same being provided with a plurality of apertures or notches, as is common with all clevises, whereby an adjustable connection may be effected between my evener and the doubletree. The inner ends of the members 7 and 8 are also provided with apertures designed to receive the anchoring-bolt 11, which passes through the tongue at this point and by which the entire evener is anchored in its operative position relative to the tongue. Suitable upper and lower bracing-sections 12 a nd 13, respectively, are also provided to give the requisite degree of rigidityand strength to the side'membars 2 and 3 and the end sections 7 and 8.

It will be understood t-hat'the position occu pied by the clevis relative to the forward end of the tongue may be readily changed as desired by causing the book 14 to engage one of the series of open. links 15 in the end of chain 6, thus disposing the rear ends of the sections 2 and 3 nearer or farther away from the tongue or object with which it is cooperating, as may be desired by. theoperator.

The aux'iliaryevener 16 is connected to the clevis 10 in any preferred way, thereby disposing said evener substantially two-thirds upon one side of the tongue or upon one side of the anchoring-bolt 11. This disposition of the evener will locate the doubletree 17 and the swingletree 18,carried thereby,wholly upon one side of the tongue, while the swingletree 19, attached to-theopposite end of the evener, will be disposed wholly upon the other side of the tongue. By this arrangement and combination of parts it is obvious that the line or center of draft will be in the ICO same plane occupied by the members 2 and 3, the said line of draft extending through the bolt 9 and insuring that the load will be equally distributed to the three animals, two of which are upon one side of the tongue and the remaining animal upon the other side thereof. Should any inequality in the division or distribution of the draft or load be discovered, a more perfect division may be readily effected by a proper adjustment of the anchoring-chains 5 and 6. By disposing the rear ends of the members 2 and 3 nearer the tongue the bolt 9 is disposed rearwardly, and since said bolt in its bodily movement describes the arc of a circle said bolt will also be disposed nearer the tongue than when the members 7 and 8 are standing directly at right angles to the tongue.

It will be seen from the foregoing that I have provided a very simple though reliably efficient appliance of the character specified whereby the load of a vehicle or the like may be most perfectly distributed, so that each of the three or more animals drawing the load will be required to perform its just share of the work.

The various parts of my invention may be very cheaplyand expeditiously manufactured and readily assembled each in its respective operative position, and while I have described the preferred combination and construction of parts I wish to comprehend such substantial equivalents and substitutes as may be considered as falling within the scope of my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The herein-described evener comprising the combination with the tongue of a pivoted member extending laterally therefrom and comprising the parallel sections 2 and 3 and the end sections 7 and 8 and pivotally united by suitable bolts combined with bracing-sections 12 and 13; an anchoring-bolt 11 and chains carried by the rear end of said members 2 and 3, all combined substantially as specified and for the purpose set forth.

2. The herein-described evener comprising the side members 2 and 3; a bolt and block 4 pivotally uniting said members near their middle portion; forward complementing members 7 and 8 pivoted to the forward ends of said side members; suitable bracing-sections adapted to hold said side and front members substantially at right angles to each other and an anchoring-chain carried by the rear end of each of said side members and adapted to pass around the tongue of the vehicle whereby the position of the clevis carried by said side members may be varied as desired as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The herein-described evenerconsisting of the triangular body portion comprising complementingside and'end sections pivotally united together; a bracing-section connecting said side and end members and holding them substantially at right angles to each other; a clevis pivotally secured to the meeting angle of said members and suitable means to lock and hold the rear ends of the side members relatively to the plane of the tongue all substantially as specified and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I alfix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ELMER ELIAS LOVVDER.

Witnesses:

ERNEST SOHOFIELD, JAMES A. MELLOR. 

